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Oh, sorry. I didn’t realize you were there.

Just after Jay, Wally, and I left the house this afternoon to get Caroline, Pearl Jam’s “Better Man” came on the radio. I could hardly believe my luck. My favorite band, one of their best songs, playing at a time of the day when the boys and I otherwise would be stuck listening to “Pumped Up Kicks” yet again.

As we waited at a red light I let it loose:

She lies and says she’s in love with him, can’t find a better man…

She dreams in color, she dreams in red, can’t find a better man

The light turned green. I turned the radio up, sang louder. In the back of my head I wondered: “What does Jay make of this? What is it like for him to see his dad overtaken by music? Does such passion surprise him? Scare him? Intrigue him?”

Then the song came to an end and I looked at the backseat. Jay was sitting there, staring out the window at a gas station. I’m pretty sure he basically didn’t even know I was there.